New EV Company Trolls Elon Musk with Ultra-Light ‘Roadster’

EV maker Longbow is taking two sleek new models to market – and analysts say the competition might be taking note.

That’s because Longbow’s latest entries have more going for them than your average electric car.

This UK-based startup is supported by a strong pedigree, including ex-employees from EV leaders like BYD, Tesla and Lucid.

And Longbow hopes to leverage this talent in order to “capture driving enjoyment” with two new exciting electric sports cars – the Speedster and the Roadster.

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Longbow calls them FEVs – a nod to one of their most defining features. The “F” stands for featherweight, and instead of your typically-overweight electric, the automaker is breaking the mold: the Speedster weighs reportedly less than 2,000 lbs, and the Roadster comes in at 2,200. For comparison, the heaviest EV in the industry – the GMC Hummer – weighs around 9,000 lbs.

Car and Driver says the two models use an aluminum chassis and composite panels to cut weight. A long, flat profile looks dynamic and ready to sprint from zero to 62 in just 3.5 seconds.

The two-seaters are both rear-wheel drive, and a recent feature by TopGear explained that many of the components — including batteries, motors, and brakes – would be sourced from other companies, possibly the nearby high-performance component suppliers that service area Formula 1 and Formula E teams.

Car and Driver adds, however, that “certain elements such as the lights and mirrors will be parts-bin pieces to keep costs down.”

Speaking of cost, the Speedster is set to be a hand-built, limited run for $110,000 US, while the Roadster comes in at a more approachable price of $84,000 and will be produced at higher volumes.

Despite being feature-rich, the Roadster, specifically, is getting a lot of attention for one other reason.

Observers note that the Roadster name is a not-so-subtle dig at competitor Tesla. In fact, Top Gear went so far as to say it was “deliberately named to annoy Elon Musk.”

That’s because Tesla has yet to release its own “Roadster” model, which it’s been teasing for eight years.

For Longbow, it took a mere two: the company was founded in 2023.

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